Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh won the 2025 Home Run Derby — but it didn’t come without some controversy.
Raleigh was the penultimate batter in the first round of the derby, and he benefited in knowing how many home runs he needed to hit to likely advance. The top four hitters advance, so Raleigh needed to get past Brent Rooker’s 17 moonshots.
It wasn’t a hot start as Raleigh struggled to get over the fence to start the round, but the switch hitter went from batting left-handed to going right-handed, and that’s when he started connecting. When he got to the bonus round, he ended up finishing with 17 home runs, the same exact as Rooker.
With a tie for the final spot, most people figured a swing-off would happen to determine who advances. Instead, MLB decided it by who hit the longest home run?
And it came down to less than an inch.
Both sluggers hit a 470-foot home run, and it had to go down to the decimal point. Rooker’s home run went 470.535. Raleigh’s went 470.617, advancing him by 0.08 feet.
‘My goodness gracious, it’s close. It’s just crazy. An inch off, and I’m not even in the final four. Just amazing,’ Raleigh said after the Derby. ‘I guess I got lucky there. One extra biscuit.’
The decision greatly helped Raleigh. He beat Oneil Cruz in the semifinal, 19-13, and just got by Junior Caminero in the finals. He hit 19 homers to start the championship round, and Caminero came up short with 15.
Cal Raleigh-Brent Rooker decision causes frustration
The decision certainly caused controversy, mostly with people feeling like Rooker was robbed and fans were deprived from seeing an epic swing-off. It also doesn’t help it ended up completely altering the 2025 Home Run Derby.
Rooker certainly didn’t seem too thrilled about what unfolded.
‘You know, maybe if they have it to the decimal point, they should display that during the Derby and not wait till everyone’s done to bring out that information that might be helpful,’ Rooker told the San Francisco Chronicle.
